The unanimous reporting in Tuesday’s newspapers says Jurgen Klopp will be announced as the new Liverpool manager this week.
Klopp will sign an initial three-year deal at Anfield and his first game in charge will be away to Tottenham a week on Saturday.
Chris Bascombe of the Telegraph says the 48-year-old German is FSG’s dream managerial appointment, having first wanting him to replace Roy Hodgson and later approaching him after Kenny Dalglish was sacked.
Liverpool’s non-international players will return to training at Melwood today, where Gary McAllister and Sean O’Driscoll will take charge of proceedings, but both are set to leave the club, with Klopp’s two assistants, Zeljko Buvac and Peter Krawietz, set to join the German on Merseyside.
There will be no immediate changes to Liverpool’s hierarchy, but Klopp has, according to Simon Hughes of the Independent, sought clarity on who would have the final say on transfers.
Hughes writes that a sporting director could be added to the club’s hierarchy, with Klopp having worked well with Michael Zorc at Dortmund. Writes Hughes: “it is possible that someone of a similar stature will the same role at Liverpool, a role that would bridge the gap between the boardroom and management. It is thought that such a move would not render irrelevant the club’s much criticised transfer committee. ”
Hughes also outlines how FSG have taken this opportunity to acquire one of the best coaches in the world, knowing that their rivals could be seeking managerial changes too – and that the Premier League is extremely open this season:
“Beneath the frenzy of the last 24 hours, lies a reality: only six points separates Liverpool in 10th from Manchester City in first. By sacking Rodgers, FSG believe that not only do they now possess a head start on rivals, it will give Liverpool the best possible opportunity of finishing inside the top four – or even challenging for the title this season, taking into consideration the relative struggles of several clubs they are meant to be competing against.”
Hughes adds that “FSG made their minds up about the manager the morning after they scraped past Carlisle and have since been sounding out a number of potential candidates they believe are capable of becoming Rodgers’ successor.”
The Express’ Paul Joyce adds: “Whether FSG use a time of change to consider the merit of bringing a former player, such as Steven Gerrard or Jamie Carragher, back into the fold remains to be seen.”
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